The Cienfuegos Elephants fueled the fight for classification in the 64th National Baseball Series this Friday, after a character victory against Matanzas in a day that reorganized forces in the decisive stretch.
In the fight for the last place in the quarterfinals, the pachyderms signed a high-voltage comeback to beat the Crocodiles of Matanzas 7-5 and reach the Vegueros of Pinar del Río in eighth place, who sealed their match against Industriales due to darkness, with a 12-9 blue advantage in the eighth episode.
A devastating cluster of six runs in the sixth chapter definitively tipped the balance in favor of the southerners, who reached 38 victories and buried the mathematical options of the Wasps of Santiago de Cuba.
Erisbel Arruebarrena detonated a home run with two on board to ignite the rebellion, and shortly after José Manuel Oramas repeated the dose to complete the attack that marked the course of the challenge.
From the mound, Islay Sotolongo was credited with the victory with a task of 8.1 innings, in which he allowed five runs, two of them the product of a home run by Andrys Pérez in the ninth inning.
At the Nelson Fernández stadium in San José de las Lajas, the Gallos de Sancti Spíritus defeated the Hurricanes of Mayabeque 9-5 to close their qualifying schedule and await their rivals in the quarterfinals.
Rey Richard Ricardo led the Yayabera offense with a single, double and three RBIs, while Delvis Hernández went 3 for 5 and Frederich Cepeda Jr. contributed two RBIs and a double.
Fernando Betanzo pitched five and two-thirds innings without allowing runs to score his sixth victory of the tournament, while Albert Valladares took the loss after an outing of just 1.1 innings, marked by six walks and five runs.
At the close of the day, the Waspas of Santiago de Cuba defeated the Alazanes of Granma 12-11 at the Mártires de Barbados in Bayamo, a result that extended the losing streak of the people of Granma to eleven.
Andy Rodríguez and Raydel Sánchez hit home runs for the untamed, who reached 105 home runs in the championship and continue to set records in 75-game tournaments, while Leonardo Alarcón stood out for the defeated with an explosive 5-4, including a home run and four RBIs.
(Editorial Latin Press)
